California | Local
National
World
Business
Sports
Campaign '08
Science
Environment
Opinion
Entertainment The Guide Arts & Culture The Envelope
Travel Health Autos Home & Garden Food Image Books Living Green
Video
Photography
Obituaries
Crosswords/Sudoku
Your Scene
Blogs
Columnists
Print Edition
Readers Rep
Corrections
All Sections
Buy, Sell & More Jobs Cars Real Estate Foreclosure Sale
Apartments
Personals
Deals at Local Stores
Coupons
Newspaper Ads
Place an Ad In the Newspaper Online
Settings/Services Sign In Register Personalized News E-Mail Newsletters
RSS Feeds
Help
Contact Us
L.A. Times Archives
Reprint Requests
Work for Us
Home Delivery Customer Support Subscribe
Entertainment The Guide Arts & Culture The Envelope
Travel Health Autos Home & Garden Food Image Books Living Green
Buy, Sell & More Jobs Cars Real Estate Foreclosure Sale
Apartments
Personals
Deals at Local Stores
Coupons
Newspaper Ads
Place an Ad In the Newspaper Online
Settings/Services Sign In Register Personalized News E-Mail Newsletters
RSS Feeds
Help
Contact Us
L.A. Times Archives
Reprint Requests
Work for Us
Home Delivery Customer Support Subscribe
Marine Lance Corporal GEORGE J. PAYTON
An easygoing youngster
Marine Lance Cpl. George Payton's friends thought they had saved him.
In the first days of the Marine offensive on Fallouja in November 2004, Lance Cpl. George J. Payton of the 3-5 Marines wondered why his unit wasn't getting any action. The next day the unit was in a firefight and he told me he suddenly realized that in war, you could go from boredom to action in a flash.
He said it sheepishly, almost embarrassed that he had revealed himself to be so new to all-out urban warfare.
He said it sheepishly, almost embarrassed that he had revealed himself to be so new to all-out urban warfare.
Payton, a 20-year-old from Culver City, was unfailingly polite, laughed easily and joked once about the possibility that Tupac Shakur wasn't dead and was actually lying low in Fallouja.
On Nov. 14, Payton was clearing a house and pivoted into one of its rooms. A fighter hiding inside fired a bullet in his leg and lobbed a grenade. Payton fell in the doorway, bleeding, and his buddy Lance Cpl. Kip Yeager dragged him out. A medic wrapped a tourniquet around Payton's leg and they evacuated him.
His company thought Payton would make it, and the young Marines congratulated one another. They thought they had something to be happy about after a week of grim bloodshed.
On Nov. 14, Payton was clearing a house and pivoted into one of its rooms. A fighter hiding inside fired a bullet in his leg and lobbed a grenade. Payton fell in the doorway, bleeding, and his buddy Lance Cpl. Kip Yeager dragged him out. A medic wrapped a tourniquet around Payton's leg and they evacuated him.
His company thought Payton would make it, and the young Marines congratulated one another. They thought they had something to be happy about after a week of grim bloodshed.
I still remember how sure they were that they had saved their friend's life. Only later would they learn they were wrong. Payton died during surgery at a military hospital.
Last year, I saw his old platoon commander, who carried Payton's picture in his wallet, along with photos of the others in his unit who died in Fallouja. He glanced at the photos for a second and then put them away.
ned.parker@latimes.com
Last year, I saw his old platoon commander, who carried Payton's picture in his wallet, along with photos of the others in his unit who died in Fallouja. He glanced at the photos for a second and then put them away.
ned.parker@latimes.com
More...
MIDEAST NEWSLETTER
• Complete coverage of Iraq, Iran, Israel and the rest of the Mideast from Times correspondents.
A jump in obesity may explain why about 60% experience occasional reflux symptoms. An array of medication may also be exacerbating the problem.
The infamous queen of France Marie Antoinette would be right at home again could she return to her newly restored chateau at Versailles, a 40-minute train ride west of Paris.
ADVERTISEMENT
National Headlines
The corporate philosophy has enabled the financial giant to weather turbulence.